BENGALURU: A examine led by Bengaluru scientists — a first-of-its-kind within the Indian subcontinent — performed throughout a number of Indian states has make clear the dietary habits of threatened vulture species, offering essential insights for his or her conservation efforts.
The analysis, revealed within the journal Organic Conservation, employed a novel metabarcoding approach (plant and animal identification primarily based on DNA-based identification and fast DNA sequencing) to analyse faecal samples from 4 vulture species throughout the genus Gyps: the White-rumped vulture, Indian vulture, Eurasian griffon, and Himalayan griffon.
Mosumi Ghosh-Harihar, the lead creator of the paper mentioned: “Metabarcoding allowed us to generate information on vulture diets from numerous faecal samples very effectively and reliably. We might use samples collected with out disturbing the birds. The pipeline (designed by us) allowed us to concurrently establish the vulture species, its intercourse and dietary species.”
Led by scientists from the Nationwide Centre for Organic Sciences (NCBS-TIFR) in Bengaluru, Bombay Pure Historical past Society, Division of Zoology, College of Cambridge, Karnataka Vulture Conservation Belief, and Hume Centre for Ecology and Wildlife Biology, the examine discovered that enormous ungulates, each home and wild, had been the primary dietary parts for these vultures.
Nevertheless, the composition of their weight loss plan different considerably. In most areas, vultures primarily scavenged on home ungulate carcasses, probably because of the excessive availability of livestock. Conversely, in South Indian states, the vultures primarily ate up wild ungulate stays, doubtlessly as a consequence of decrease livestock carcass availability and cultural traditions involving cattle and buffalo meat consumption.
The findings underscore the vultures’ vital dependence on home ungulate carrion, highlighting the necessity for continued efforts to get rid of dangerous veterinary medication, akin to diclofenac, which induced catastrophic declines in vulture populations within the Nineties and early 2000s.
“Diclofenac-contaminated carcasses, when scavenged by the vultures, led to widespread mortality. Notably, populations of the three resident Gyps species (G. bengalensis, G. indicus, G. tenuirostris) witnessed a staggering decline of higher than 95%, making them critically endangered and prompting prohibition of veterinary diclofenac in India and neighbouring international locations by 2006,” NCBS mentioned.
20 years later, the numbers of all three species stay low and comparatively secure, with no indicators of restoration. Nevertheless, regardless of the ban on diclofenac, its unlawful use in treating livestock persists and stays unregulated in lots of pockets of the nation, NCBS added.
“Our outcomes emphasise the necessity for a continued ban on veterinary diclofenac use, in addition to different NSAIDs (Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication)… We hope these organic insights can contribute to on-ground inhabitants administration for his or her conservation and restoration,” mentioned Prof Uma Ramakrishnan, the senior creator of the examine from NCBS.
Researchers urge for ongoing conservation actions, together with testing medication for his or her impression on vultures, advocating for authorized bans, and guaranteeing enforcement and schooling to advertise compliance.
With vulture populations nonetheless critically low and displaying no indicators of restoration, this examine supplies priceless data to information focused conservation methods and safeguard these important scavengers within the Indian subcontinent.
The analysis, revealed within the journal Organic Conservation, employed a novel metabarcoding approach (plant and animal identification primarily based on DNA-based identification and fast DNA sequencing) to analyse faecal samples from 4 vulture species throughout the genus Gyps: the White-rumped vulture, Indian vulture, Eurasian griffon, and Himalayan griffon.
Mosumi Ghosh-Harihar, the lead creator of the paper mentioned: “Metabarcoding allowed us to generate information on vulture diets from numerous faecal samples very effectively and reliably. We might use samples collected with out disturbing the birds. The pipeline (designed by us) allowed us to concurrently establish the vulture species, its intercourse and dietary species.”
Led by scientists from the Nationwide Centre for Organic Sciences (NCBS-TIFR) in Bengaluru, Bombay Pure Historical past Society, Division of Zoology, College of Cambridge, Karnataka Vulture Conservation Belief, and Hume Centre for Ecology and Wildlife Biology, the examine discovered that enormous ungulates, each home and wild, had been the primary dietary parts for these vultures.
Nevertheless, the composition of their weight loss plan different considerably. In most areas, vultures primarily scavenged on home ungulate carcasses, probably because of the excessive availability of livestock. Conversely, in South Indian states, the vultures primarily ate up wild ungulate stays, doubtlessly as a consequence of decrease livestock carcass availability and cultural traditions involving cattle and buffalo meat consumption.
The findings underscore the vultures’ vital dependence on home ungulate carrion, highlighting the necessity for continued efforts to get rid of dangerous veterinary medication, akin to diclofenac, which induced catastrophic declines in vulture populations within the Nineties and early 2000s.
“Diclofenac-contaminated carcasses, when scavenged by the vultures, led to widespread mortality. Notably, populations of the three resident Gyps species (G. bengalensis, G. indicus, G. tenuirostris) witnessed a staggering decline of higher than 95%, making them critically endangered and prompting prohibition of veterinary diclofenac in India and neighbouring international locations by 2006,” NCBS mentioned.
20 years later, the numbers of all three species stay low and comparatively secure, with no indicators of restoration. Nevertheless, regardless of the ban on diclofenac, its unlawful use in treating livestock persists and stays unregulated in lots of pockets of the nation, NCBS added.
“Our outcomes emphasise the necessity for a continued ban on veterinary diclofenac use, in addition to different NSAIDs (Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication)… We hope these organic insights can contribute to on-ground inhabitants administration for his or her conservation and restoration,” mentioned Prof Uma Ramakrishnan, the senior creator of the examine from NCBS.
Researchers urge for ongoing conservation actions, together with testing medication for his or her impression on vultures, advocating for authorized bans, and guaranteeing enforcement and schooling to advertise compliance.
With vulture populations nonetheless critically low and displaying no indicators of restoration, this examine supplies priceless data to information focused conservation methods and safeguard these important scavengers within the Indian subcontinent.
